• Type 2 Diabetes

    Type 2 Diabetes

    Management and prevention of type 2 diabetes.

An introduction to Type 2 Diabetes

Unfortunately diabetes is on the rise and is said to be the fastest growing health treat of our times. In the UK alone around 3million people have been diagnosed with diabetes, which is a 100% increase in the last 20 years.

Diabetes is undoubtedly a multifactorial disease, meaning there can be a number of potential contributing factors to the development of diabetes. When it comes to type 2 Diabetes this is much more a disease of nutrition and lifestyle management. Type 2 Diabetes is not something that occurs overnight, it is something that develops for years and years.

Some of us are certainly more genetically predisposed to developing diabetes that others, I include myself in that, given the long history of diabetes on my mother’s side. However, just because you might be genetically more likely to develop diabetes, it does not mean you have to go down that path.

As well as helping family members with their diabetes related issues, I have also worked with a number of clients to help them with their management and prevention of type 2 diabetes.

How can nutrition help with Type 2 Diabetes?

The development of type 2 diabetes is something that occurs primarily as a result of something called insulin resistance. Insulin resistance is when the cells in your body become less effective at responding to insulin, making it harder to get glucose from the blood into your cells.

As a result the body makes more insulin to get that sugar into the cell. Overtime the cells become less and less responsive to insulin until eventually blood glucose is no longer able to enter the cell effectively and your blood glucose becomes chronically elevated, it is at this point you will be diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and likely recommended medications to help control your blood glucose levels.

The reality is that insulin resistance and chronic elevations in insulin and glucose bring with it much more risk than just diabetes, they can increase the risk of a number of other health issues including weight gain and diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancers, hormonal issues to name a few.

Functional Medicine How I Can Help

Nutrition considerations

What we put in our mouth during meal times and throughout the day as snacks and drinks all play a role in the development of type two diabetes, and thus it makes sense that by addressing some of these nutritional imbalances we can get a favorable outcome with blood glucose and thus insulin management and diabetes development or risk.

There are certainly some foods that are more inclined to have a negative effect on insulin sensitivity. Some of the worse foods include:

  • Processed sugars
  • Processed grains
  • Vegetable oils

This is not to say that you may never eat these foods again, however it may be wise to moderate them along side a number of other foods while focusing on developing a plan around foods that are generally supportive of blood glucose regulation.

Foods that are supportive are often natural whole foods such as fiberous vegetables, proteins, healthy fats, good quality carbohydrates like certain fruits, root veg and some grains in some individuals.

We are all individual and developing a nutrition plan that both suits your physiological goals and also satisfies your social and psychological relationship with food can be challenging and take time to develop, but that is what I am here to help support you with.

Janet Lyons

After 3 months it was time for my diabetic review and the follow up blood tests. To my amazement and the diabetic nurses’ amazement my average blood sugar score over the 3 months had gone from 8.6 down to 6.7, the lowest it had been in years.

Type 2 Diabetes Nutritionist

Lifestyle Effects On Type 2 Diabetes

Can lifestyle impact Type 2 Diabetes as well?

As well as nutrition, our lifestyle can also affect insulin sensitivity. Having had 8 years experience as a personal trainer, I am also aware of the role exercise can have in helping to prevent or even help reverse type 2 diabetes. There is plenty of established research now indicating specific forms of exercise in their role in improving diabetes outcomes and this is something that I would certainly discuss with you during our consultations.

Stress is also a big contributing factor as stress can in fact increase levels of blood glucose purely from the increase in stress hormones. This in itself can be a contributing factor behind the development of type 2 diabetes in some individuals.

Sleep too been linked with the development of insulin resistance, thus ensuring you are getting a good night sleep is also important to me.

Type 2 Diabetes Testing

Relevant Testing

Diabetes, insulin resistance and blood glucose issues can in general be related to numerous other issues including nutrient insufficiencies, gut bacteria and digestive imbalances. As well as using blood testing to determine diabetes risk or stage, we can also use other tests to try and address underlying contributors to the development and progression of type 2 diabetes.

I’ll also be pleased to review your blood test results from your GP at no extra cost on top of my consultation services.

How I can help you prevent or improve your Type 2 Diabetes outcome

My process is simple; as with all clients it starts with an initial health screen, review of health history, medical history and review of your nutrition and lifestyle habits. I can also review past tests to understand your stage of type 2 diabetes.

At that point we then work together to put together an individualised plan of action to support your health goals. We then look at scheduling follow up sessions throughout the recovery process to tweak and optimise your program.

I am more than happy to work with any other trained professional you might also be working with including your GP and have a good knowledge with regards to nutrition and its interaction with medications that may have been prescribed.

If you are interested in working with me, please feel free to complete the form below to enquire about a consultation which can take place at any one of my clinics or via Skype.

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To find out more about how we may be able to assist you on your journey please fill out the enquiry form below.

*Please note that Steve is currently running at near capacity for clients. For that reason he may not be able to offer any availability. We are happy to add you to a cancellation list or Steve has a network of other clinicians that he may be able to refer you to if you so wish.

If you are a referral from a clinician please complete the form and ensure you state who has referred you or have your practitioner email Steve direct to make a referral that way.

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